Abstract

A deterministic approach to intracavity adaptive-optic mode control based on the geometric theory of the aberration sensitivity in unstable resonators is described. This approach relies on a direct measurement of the phase aberration structure outcoupled from the resonator from which is determined a global estimate of the required correction. The results of a numerical simulation of this correction procedure in an unstable’ laser system for several aberration types are presented. In all cases considered, the residual intracavity phase aberration is driven to zero in four iterations of the described correction scheme, while the relative far-field performance measures of on-axis intensity and absolute power in the bucket are driven to within 1 % of their unaberrated values in just three iterations.

© 1985 Optical Society of America